Four Days in New Orleans was not enough!

      Our mainland visit was a three state tour where we mostly paraded around our new baby daughter. One of the stops being New Orleans where we spent four nights. My reason for a pilgrimage back to the city I love was so that I could be a bridesmaid in a family friend's wedding. It was an honor I was eager to undertake seeing as I introduced the couple and take sole responsibility (Ashley, the bride, agrees)! What I learned was that four nights was not enough time!
     Despite seeing about 100 friends I haven't seen since I moved (yes about 100) and having ample time on Bourbon Street (1 night was more than enough when you previously lived in the city for 9 years), I found myself missing the thing I knew I would miss most and that is just LIVING there.
    New Orleans is what I consider a big "small" town. What I mean is although it is a major city, it still has the small town feel. Going to the store meant potentially running into some one I know. In fact, the hairdresser doing my hair for the wedding married someone I had a class with when I was a freshman in college. It is a small, small world in New Orleans.
    Not only that, but the connections and friendships I have made are life lasting. My friends accept me as family. In fact, their families accept me as family. They have openly welcomed me into their lives and I am greeted with warmth every time I return. I would like to say that I am special. I am the exception to the rule. They welcome me into their household because I am just that awesome, but I am not. They do it for everyone. Every friend their children have becomes their friends. Then, the lasting friendships turn into family and that is something I greatly miss. I miss that sense of community. I miss that sense of family.
      Sure, Mardi Gras is a blast!!! Bourbon Street has it's moments of brilliance but has mostly faded into obscurity as I got older. The food is incredible (probably the second thing I miss most), but what I truly miss is the since of family that seems to be so embedded in the New Orleans culture.
     I attended school there. I played soccer on multiple teams. I coached soccer. I had a full time job in a big place. I did sorority alumni things and extra work in movies. I took my dogs to the dog park. I have built a whole life with a community that has a since of family and fun.
     It is a side of New Orleans that tourists do not see that I miss most. It is what gives New Orleans that extra spark that tourists see looking in but can't figure out what it is. It is a secret that they keep that outsiders don't get. Some call it Southern charm, but I like to think of it just as family. This is why I consider New Orleans to be my true home especially since it is the longest place I have lived thus far in my life (being a military brat is a lot of moving).

Lots of Love from a homesick New Orleanian,

E.M.

Frenchmarket crack down

     I recently made a pilgrimage back to the town I love the most! NEW ORLEANS! This experience was different as I had my tiny little Writer's Block (aka baby daughter Noey) in tote. So I decided to do the "tourist thing" and spend a morning exploring the French Quarter. This led me to my final destination of the French Market.
     One thing I can say that was positive about hurricane Katrina is it caused this area to be revamped! Yay! Before the storm, it was grungy and the booths were ill-fitted messes that squeezed into every available crevice of the place. Often you could smell a faint odor of pee from the drunken idiots the night before "marking their territory" (honestly do that by the Mississippi River if you need to pee and everything's closed. lol) Now, there is a farmer's market section with snack booths. Then there is a separate section for trinkets, nick-nacks and tourist type stuff. Did I mention the CLEAN public restrooms?! Happy Day!
     It has come a long way and I recommend anyone who needs to get "gifts" for people from your vacation go here because it is substantially cheaper than the stores in the Quarter. With that said, when did they start NOT haggling the prices?! I bought 5 magnets for friends at one booth. I had cash (which  means they don't have a paper trail). I asked the pushy, old Asian woman if I could wave the 45 cent tax and she looked at me annoyed and said NO. Normally, I would have switched booths, but I was in a hurry, so I threw an extra dollar her way and called it a day, but I was highly annoyed.
    As I walked around, I noticed all the booths do it now. Maybe they are cracking down on it? I don't know but I will forever miss the days of haggling and saving that measly 45 cents. It's not about the money, it's about the feeling that I got a good deal.
    Despite my minor complaint (a silly one anyway), I love the NEW IMPROVED French Market and think its a destination stop for any tourist visiting New Orleans. I recommend perusing the merchandise while sipping on an Alcoholic Banana's Smoothie you can purchase there.

  Much more New Orleans and vacation blogs to come in the next few weeks!

Lots of Love,

E.M.